Digital Commons Network^™

Women Leaders' Lived Experiences Of Bravery In Leadership, Michelle E. Bartlett

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Purpose

The research aims to understand the stories of women leaders who have demonstrated bravery in leadership. By analyzing their lived experiences through storytelling and narratives, it seeks to shed light on the challenges and motivations behind their brave actions, contributing to a deeper understanding of bravery in leadership within gender and organizational contexts.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopts a qualitative multiple case study approach, focusing on the autobiographical accounts of three women leaders to explore their experiences of bravery in leadership. Utilizing narrative analysis (NA), it is grounded in ethical leadership theory and narrative identity theory. The research method involves …

Examining The Cross-Cultural Competence Of United States Christian Missionaries Engaged In Developing Indigenous Leaders: A Mixed Methods Study, Craig W. Goodman

Dissertations

For the past two millennia, missionaries have crossed from one culture to another to bring the Christian message to all cultures of the world. Questions about the effectiveness of these mission efforts have been asked and researched by many; however, one key question remains unanswered: what personal attributes help a person to be more competent at crossing cultures as they interact with people from other cultures? Although cross-cultural competence has been studied in a variety of fields over the past 50 years, the models and assessments used have never been applied to Christian missionaries.

To address this deficiency, this parallel …

An Exploration Of Successful Housing Outcomes After Homelessness: An Experience Captured Through The Lens Of U.S. Veterans, Janice Filer

Theses and Dissertations

Homelessness is experienced by veterans at a higher percentage than nonveterans. Veterans represent eight percent of the homeless population (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2019). Also, the mortality rate of younger homeless veterans is higher than non-homeless veterans (Schinka et al., 2018). Veterans experience the lack of affordable housing, the lack of affordable health care, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance abuse, and a lack of family or social support (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, 2018). The purpose of this qualitative research study was to interview prior homeless veterans from Gulf War Era I (1990 - 2001) and/or Gulf …

Exploring Antecedents Of Those Who Practice Servant Leadership, Maria Anne Kindelan Ma

All Student Scholarship

The purpose of the study was to explore the preceding essence of the individual who is a servant leader. In search of antecedents, the researcher used a qualitative method with a phenomenological design, exploring what brought the participants to utilize servant leadership. Furthermore, the researcher aimed to fill a gap by asking participants to provide their stories of what brought them to employ such a leadership style versus suggesting answers. This qualitative research study was conducted to answer the question: "What are the antecedents of the person who practices servant leadership?" A criterion sample was used to recruit servant leaders …

Is It Who Am I Or Who Do You Think I Am? Identity Development Of Adolescents With Substance Use Disorders, Danielle N. Treiber

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study was to unearth how adolescents with substance use disorders achieve the task of identity formation and the construction of self-concept in the midst of the drug culture and society that exists. It sought to uncover the social constructs designed to ignore and/or remove human complexities and allow an intersectional approach to be brought to a study on this population. Historically, there has been a failure to investigate the underlying social attitudes and behaviors that impact the very delicate and vulnerable process of finding self. Psychosocial and relational adjustment are strongly influenced by the extent to …

Developing And Sustaining Political Citizenship For Poor And Marginalized People: The Evelyn T. Butts Story, Kenneth Cooper Alexander

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study tells the deep, rich story of Evelyn T. Butts, a grassroots civil rights champion in Norfolk, Virginia, whose bridge leadership style can teach and inspire new generations about political, community, and social change. Butts used neighbor-to-neighbor skills to keep her community connected with the national civil rights movement, which had heavily relied on grassroots leaders—especially women—for much of its success in overthrowing America’s Jim Crow system of segregation and suppression. She is best-known for her 1963 lawsuit that resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1966 decision to ban poll taxes for state and local elections, a democratizing event …

A Mixed Methods Study: Dimensions Of Cross-Cultural Professional Success: Experiences Of Western Women Living And Working In Eastern Cultures, Tami J. France

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In this world of global interconnectedness women continue to develop cross-cultural careers and their experiences impact and influence global scholarship and practice. Through this study, the relationships, resources, and characteristics that support female expatriate success were explored, with additional focus on the role of mentor and coach relationships. The mixed-methods study was conducted using a sequential approach to research that began with one-on-one semi structured interviews with ten professional women from the United States and Canada working or formerly working in China and Hong Kong. A survey was designed based on the interview findings. Professional women from western countries working …

The Role Of Chief Diversity Officers In Institutionalizing Diversity And Inclusion: A Multiple Case Study Of Three Exemplar Universities, Cynthia D. Dávalos Phd

Dissertations

Due to demographic shifts and the changing political and economic landscape, universities are experiencing increased demands to produce a culturally competent and well-trained globally minded workforce. To address these demands in a systematic manner, several universities have created a new senior level administrative position to direct campus diversity and inclusion efforts. This position known universally in academia as the Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) is responsible for institutionalizing diversity and inclusion so that diversity moves from the margins of the university to the center and becomes a standard way of thinking and doing business. Given this high-level executive leadership design, the …

Facilitating Comprehension And Motivation By Engaging Adolescents As Ipad Readers, Virginia M. Bauman Edd

Dissertations

Technologies continue to transform the many ways that we read, write, and communicate, redefining what it means to be literate in the 21st century. For example, the explosive growth in tablet computers over the last few years has seemingly everyone embracing the new digital literacies without any real knowledge of the skills, strategies, and dispositions required to comprehend digital text. Given the newness of this technology, it's hardly surprising that little empirical research has been conducted to examine the extent to which e-books can actually improve comprehension as well as the motivation to read among students. To help solve this …

Central And Secondary Struggles In Social Interventions: The Impact Of Group Relations Learning On Real Life Practices, Ole-Kristian Setnes Phd

Dissertations

Recently, there has been considerable research focusing on outcomes of Group Relations conferences as a unique form of adult experiential learning. Most of the focus has been on participants' learning during and immediately after conferences with less attention paid to applications of learning outside conferences in participants' professional and/or personal lives. The San Diego group relations/ case-in-point model is integrated into the University of San Diego's graduate leadership studies program. Participants in this study included 10 individuals who had participated in this model's experiential learning as teaching assistants. The methodology that was implemented, Relational Qualitative Research, synthesizes elements from several …

"Parent Trigger" Legislation In The United States: A Key To Parent Empowerment In The Local Context, Julie A. Zoellin Cramer Phd

Dissertations

Parent involvement in public education has changed over time in the United States. Recently it has taken on a more radical dimension aimed at shifting the role of parents. These efforts are identified by some as parent empowerment and arguably may be part of a larger policy movement to secure parent voice in equity-focused education reform. The policy innovation allows parents with students in persistently underperforming schools to force a change in school governance. Since the passage of the first parent trigger law in California in 2010, three parent petition campaigns have forced a turnaround in school governance. The purpose …

Leading Dangerously: A Case Study Of Military Teams And Shared Leadership In Dangerous Environments, Alex J Ramthun, Gina S. Matkin

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Faculty Publications

In a qualitative case study, we described and explained shared leadership in dangerous contexts for military teams. We conducted eight semistructured interviews with shared, team, and military leadership subject matter experts in order to gain an improved understanding of the relationship between shared leadership and team performance in the presence of danger. We found the themes of mutual influence, leadership emergence, dangerous dynamism, and distributed knowledge, skills, and abilities provided rich description of the phenomenon. Specifically, our findings suggest military teams in dangerous situations use mutual influence and leadership emergence to share leadership and achieve high performance. Additionally, we found …

The Nature And Influence Of Relationship On Success In A Virtual Work Environment, Carol Locher Ransone

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The evolution of technology in the 21st century has led to a greater understanding of the benefits and the challenges of expanding work relationships across geographical boundaries. This expansion has contributed to the development of a global society with over three million employee teleworkers (Global Workplace Analytics and the Telework Research Network, 2013). In spite of the advances in connecting across the globe technologically, the importance of successfully working together in a virtual work environment is grounded in relationships that foster individual growth and group cohesion. The human elements of connectivity are primary to the success of organizations as well …

Exploring The Impact On Students Of Western Universities On Foreign Soil: A Case Study Of Qatar, Richard Bakken Phd

Dissertations

The development of branch campuses in higher education is not a new phenomenon. Over the past decades, however, branch campuses have expanded throughout the world as Western universities have begun to deliver their programs and course offerings in countries that expect the West to provide educational (and, by implication, economic) success. Middle Eastern countries in particular have rapidly expanded the number of Western-style branch campuses for native students in their countries. This qualitative research study focused on one specific Middle Eastern country, Qatar, and explored how native students respond to attending a Western university that has been transplanted from the …

Work/Life Boundary Management In An Integrative Environment: A Study Of Residence Life Professionals Who Live At Their Place Of Work, Pressley Robinson Rankin Iv Phd

Dissertations

How individuals manage work/life boundaries when they live at the place they work, as opposed to working from home, is a gap in both work/life literature and in higher education literature. An obvious example from higher education is the resident life professional that lives in the residential facility that she or he oversees. Living in a residential facility creates challenges to boundary creation. The job requirements; pressures from students and staff; supervisor expectations, both spoken and unspoken; and the physical location of their home within the building creates a highly boundary integrative environment making the establishment of boundaries difficult. The …

Accounting For The Attrition Of African American Males In An Academic Support Setting, Ronald R. Lancia Phd

Dissertations

This dissertation addresses a continuing crisis in our nation's education system. Historically African American students have underperformed academically. This achievement gap is particularly pronounced for African American males. AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), an academic support program for underachieving students, most recently created the African American Male Initiative (AAMI). The AAMI was designed specifically to respond to the needs of black males. Despite its efforts, the AAMI has had a difficult time attracting and retaining black male participants. The purpose of this study was to better understand why African American high school males are not choosing to participate in the …

A Value-Added Study Of A Federal Grant Program In Mathematics For Military Dependent Students, Jay C. Marquand Phd

Dissertations

Closing the achievement gap in public education means all students are expected to be learning at grade level. In response to federal mandates requiring schools to attain specific student achievement benchmarks, many schools are placing greater resources into support programs designed to increase student achievement. Military dependent students experience unique challenges including, ongoing parent absences, extended parental deployments, and frequent moving and relocation. In California Unified School District (CUSD) where 37% of the student population is military connected, these challenges can place military dependent students at risk of failing socially, emotionally and academically. As a result, CUSD implemented an individualized, …

Parental Support Of Latinos In Higher Education, Maria Lorena Meza Phd

Dissertations

Many universities grapple with Latino student retention issues. Latinos are the largest and fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, yet they also are the group that has the least amount of formal education. The literature suggests that parental support helps Latinos succeed academically in elementary, middle, and high schools. However, there has been little research on how or even whether Latino parental support influences academic success at the postsecondary level. Consequently, there is a lack of knowledge about (a) Latino parental behavior and attitudes during the years their children attend college and (b) the relationship between parents' behavior and …

What Do They Say? Students From A Private, Faith-Based, Four-Year University Share Their Perspectives On College As A Mentoring Environment, Jeffrey Andrew Bolster Edd

Dissertations

Research indicates that the term mentor in the context of higher education currently has multiple definitions and is used to describe a variety of programs, efforts, and formal as well as informal activities. In recent years, interdisciplinary perspectives on traditional undergraduate students have been converging around the idea that the functions and characteristics of mentoring students could be shared across the institution, creating what Daloz Parks (2000) has called a mentoring environment. This sharing of responsibility has the possibility to address what Baxter Magolda (2009) has recently identified as missing in higher education, a "holistic, theoretical perspective to promote the …

Tapping The Hidden Job Market Through Informational Interviews: A Qualitative Examination Of Students' And Professionals' Perspectives, Kimberly S. Hogelucht Phd

Dissertations

A growing body of literature suggests that networking promotes not only learning about one's field of interest but also employment opportunities, without requiring a formal job search. Considering three-fourths of job openings are never advertised (Koss-Feder, 1999), it appears networking is a powerful strategy in successful job attainment. This study focuses on a less-than-obvious networking strategy, the informational interview. An informational interview is an interview with a professional that is conducted by a student or job seeker with the intention of finding out more about the professional's occupation or career field. In this study, informational interviews were examined, not only …

Communication Channels Utilized By Emirati Females To Enact Leadership, K. Kathleen O'Neill

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this exploratory study was to identify the communication channels six Emirati females concurrently employed in organizations in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates in which they had supervisory responsibilities; formal, legitimate authority; and positional leadership roles recalled using with their direct reports to enact leadership. In particular, the study attempted to ascertain the reasons for the selection of communication channels when engaged in downward communication with organizational subordinates. Data were collected via three interviews with each participant over a four week period. Interviews were conducted both face-to-face and via telephone. Data were analyzed via thematic content analysis to …

Dual Consciousness: Identity Construction Among Appalachian Professional Women In Southern Ohio, Rebecca Nicole Roades

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study examined identity construction among a purposeful sample of professional women of Appalachian origin with particular regard to the blending of their cultural heritage in a society in which they are often marginalized. The questions guiding the research were grounded in a conceptual framework encompassing elements of culture, gender, leadership, and identity theories specifically using internal colonization, social cognitive, and social identity theories. They included the following: How do these women identify with their Appalachian heritage? How has their Appalachian heritage influenced real or perceived feelings of marginalization and how has that shaped their identity? Do they perceive themselves …

The Lost-Boys Phenomenon: Case Studies Of San Diego High School Males, Richard Stakelum Edd

Dissertations

By most measures of success—e.g., academic Grade Point Average (GPA), graduation rates, participation in extracurricular and civic activities, and college enrollment—adolescent males are less successful than females. Young males are falling behind in reading and writing and are more likely to be involved in truancy, violence, crime, suicide, and substance abuse. While the nation mobilized to address historical gender discrimination issues for females since the 1970s, there has not been a similar effort mounted to assist adolescent males. The trends alluded to in the previous paragraph have begun to be recognized by popular-press authors. Some have begun to refer to …

Latina First Year Experience: Factors That Contribute To Persistence From The First To The Second Year In Higher Education, Guadalupe Rodriguez Corona Edd

Dissertations

There is limited research that identifies the university, familial and community factors that support the persistence of Latinas in higher education from the first to second year. The research that does exist has tended to focus on how institutional programs and activities have failed to work for first-generation students. Therefore, there is a need to study the persistence of Latinas in higher education that is as focused on discovering what works as it is with documenting what is ineffective. Research that focuses on Catholic universities is especially needed since many Latinas come from Roman Catholic families and, consequently, Catholic universities …

Factors Influencing The Decision Of High School Graduating Seniors In Corozal, Puerto Rico, To Pursue University Studies, Aned Yarelis Muñiz Gracia Edd

Dissertations

A university education has become a ticket out of poverty for persons living in highly competitive labor markets. Consequently, access to higher education and the factors that motivate university enrollment have long been studied. However, prior to this study, no noteworthy studies with a focus on high school students and their perceptions about higher education had been conducted in Puerto Rico. This lack of research is surprising because Puerto Rico has one of the world's most competitive job markets where a university degree can mean the difference between dependence on welfare and governmental assistance and a life of self-sufficiency and …

From Strain To Success: A Phenomenological Study Of The Personal And Academic Pressures On African American Male Community College Students, John R. Mosby Phd

Dissertations

For many African American college students, the challenges to achieve academic success are overwhelming. The disproportionate number of African American male students enrolled in the community college system is of substantial concern because community colleges have not traditionally been successful in producing African American male graduates and transfers at the same rate as their counterparts from other racial and gender groups. Moreover, the pressure for African American male students to choose between academic success and their cultural frame of reference often jeopardizes their chances of successfully completing their undergraduate degree. Consequently, African American males who choose the community college system …

Academic Writing And The Pedagogical Practices Of Effective Teachers, Thomas Devere Wolsey Edd

Dissertations

Composition, particularly when academic register is required, is a complex task. Because cognitive flexibility theory explains how humans can spontaneously restructure knowledge and adapt to situational demands, it is ideally suited to the ill-structured domain of transactional writing. Global aspects related to paragraph and whole-text structure and local operations related to word and sentence-level features define academic writing. A mixed-methods design used quantitative methods for investigation of five corpora of 10th grade students' work. Qualitative methods were used to explore the means teachers used in promoting academic writing and the interactions they intended to promote via teaching cues, including prompts. …

How Spirituality Impacts Ethical Leadership: A Cross-Case Analysis Of Eleven Corporate Chief Executive Officers, Mary Rose Johnson Edd

Dissertations

Almost weekly, there are news accounts of corporate and government leaders breaching ethical and moral standards. Indeed, in recent years, corporate corruption and misrepresentation of the truth have appeared overwhelming. At the very least, corporate and government scandals suggest that there is currently a crisis in leadership. A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America by Mitroff and Denton, a book called a “landmark contribution” by prominent leadership scholar Warren Bennis, found that individuals and organizations that have a strong sense of spirituality are “far less likely to compromise their basic beliefs and values.” Their data suggested that spirituality may serve as …

Teachers' Beliefs About The Factors That Support Successful Second Language Acquisition Of Elementary School Students, Joann M. Mcdonald Edd

Dissertations

Second language acquisition has increased in importance in elementary schools throughout the United States due, in part, to the growing numbers of English Language Learners (ELLs) as well as an economic and social demand for native English speakers to learn world languages. The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary teachers' beliefs regarding the factors that contribute to successfully learning a second language, whether students are ELLs learning English as a new language or English speakers learning a new language. More specifically, this study compared the opinions of elementary teachers of successful ELLs with teachers of English speakers successfully …

Asian American Children's Literature: A Qualitative Study Of Cultural Authenticity, Virginia S. Loh Edd

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to systematically analyze Asian-American children's trade books in terms of their cultural authenticity and to examine the perceptions of producers (authors) and consumers (teachers) as related to the cultural authenticity of such books. I wanted to understand the role of Asian-American children's trade books in research and classroom practice and also to understand the perspectives and preconceptions of these producers and consumers. By conducting this qualitative study on the cultural authenticity of Asian-American children's trade books, I hoped to fill a gap in the current discourse knowledge which does not adequately include the Asian-American …